A few months ago, while I was in a meeting in London with global influencers, we talked about the challenges in congregations. I believe that, at most meetings today, people talk more about challenges, problems, stress, difficulties, and fights among members, and the question is always: how are we going to solve this?
When Jesus called us, He supposedly extended an invitation with a guarantee, which is found in Matthew 11:25–30. There the wisdom that God has deposited in His Church is recounted, and it ends by saying: “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
However, for the vast majority of pastors, their reality is like being thrown into a sea of responsibilities with a 1,000-kilogram weight on their feet that doesn’t even allow them to float. It has become a constant struggle, like gasping for air as you drown.
A short time ago I met again with the leaders who organized that meeting in London, and they asked me: “Have you found the solution for this?”
My answer was:
The challenges, problems, stress, difficulties, and fights of members and pastors… it all comes down to the same thing:
Most pastors are dealing with people who are not born again.
Because being born again means being able to see Christ. And when one sees Christ, His wisdom overshadows human wisdom and the intelligence given by university and local school.
So, everything points to the Cross. If a person is not seeing through the lens of the new birth, then they will be seeing through a human lens.
Added to this are several common factors:
And, to make matters worse, the lack of spiritual growth and maturity among those who make up the congregation. When pastors don’t see this growth, feelings of frustration, burden, and discouragement arise. This manifests in:
Part of the reason we have this outcome—where studies say that only 2–3% of those who gather have a genuine biblical interest—is because they have not been formed. It’s that simple.
The result we see is because there are people who:
And all of this can confuse anyone, leading them to think that this is what it means to be born again.
As a result, in most cases, as pastors and leaders we have not properly stewarded the growth and the assignment entrusted to us, because our energy has gone mainly to everything we explained at the beginning. Add to that the rent, the bills, the projects and everything else on your mind.
There are three elements that are fundamental to stewardship, and I trust God that by explaining them we will gain greater clarity.
First is to understand what an element is: in chemistry, an element is a pure substance that cannot be broken down. If we alter or neglect these elements, our burden will grow, someone will feel frustrated, and we may reach age 85 with a possible lament.
The first element is Leadership: Did you know that most congregations focus mainly on forming leaders? Part of the reason is that teaching on leadership “promises” organizational growth and health. Leadership is an important element—don’t get me wrong—but it is an element that is in the wrong order. Many think it is the most important thing to sustain numerical growth, asking: who will call the members? who will manage them? who will involve them? A very common mistake is to think leadership is about authority and control, rather than a servant influence rooted in humility and spiritual maturity. People say “everything rises or falls on leadership,” but something is missing: everything rises or falls on the leader who is understood in Christ.
The second element is Service: There is a strong emphasis on mobilizing people to serve, whether in ministries or community outreach activities, which sometimes leads congregants to think that those activities are their calling. This tendency focuses here because it keeps people busy; we even call them “active members.” This answers immediate needs for volunteers and growth strategies centered on activity over spiritual depth. The consequence is that people can serve from their human wisdom, but without a solid foundation, which leads to superficial faith and eventual burnout.
The third element is Discipleship: Only a small percentage of congregations actively focus on discipleship. Studies indicate that less than 5% of churches consider themselves “disciple-making churches.” This means the vast majority do not effectively cultivate a culture of discipleship, prioritizing the formation of believers as a fundamental part of their mission. Often we translate the Sunday sermon as a substitute for discipleship, and for that reason it does not receive the necessary emphasis.
So, being born again comes first, but continuity is the active formation of the believer. This is what Jesus was saying in Matthew 11: “Father… you have hidden these things [these spiritual truths] from the wise and learned and revealed them to children [to new believers, to those who seek God’s will and purpose].”
The riches of His grace, His promises, life in the Spirit, Him as our Life, the reality of Him in me… Understanding that we are in Christ, jointly crucified. Understanding that I no longer live. Understanding that we are hidden with Christ in God.
All of this must be intentional if we want to steward the congregation’s growth and the assignment entrusted to us.
In conclusion: An incorrect ordering of the elements in a congregation is harmful and hinders the purpose of our assignment.
Let us return to Order. Let us return to Understanding. Let us return to God’s Original Design.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.